Take-up for sewing-machines.



No. 699,673. Patented May |3, |9o2.

w; 0. FREE.

TAKE-UP FOB SEWING MACHINES.

(Application filed Oct, 21, 1901.) (No Model.) 4 Sheets-Sheet l,

Wrfimssas, I LE LEE; a WZk/r; LIEee 0.69 v Patented May 13, I902;

. w. 0. FREE.

TAKE-UP FOR SEWING MACHINES.

(Application filed Oct. 21, 1901.] (No Model.) 4 Sheets-Sheet 2.-

W$f 5 a E- I I? FJFEA; WZZZ/z'am awe/ e Patented May I3, I902.

W. 6. FREE.

TAKE-UP FOR SEWING MACHINES.

(Application filed Oct. 21, 1901.) (No Model.) 4 Sheets-Sheet 3.

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No. 699,673. Patented May l3, I902.

W. 6. FREE. TAKE-UP FOR SEWING MACHINES.

(Application filed Oct. 21, 1901.)

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XVILLIAM C. FREE, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS.

TAKE -UP FOR SEWING-MACH|NES.

SPEUXFIGATION forming part of Letters Patent N 0. 699,673, dated May 13, 1902. Application filed October 21, 1901. Serial No. 79,475. (No model.)

To all whom, it may concern:

Be it known that LXVILLIAM C. FREE, a citizen of the United States of America, residing at Chicago, in the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Take-Ups for Sewing- Machines, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates specifically to improvements in take-up mechanisms for sewing-machines.

The object of these improvements is to provide a take-up mechanism that will automatically regulate the needle-thread of a sewingmachine so that a greater or lesser amount thereof will be furnished to its needle, according as such machine is sewing together thick, medium, or thin fabrics; and they consist of certain new and useful features of construction and combinations of parts especially constructed and designed to that end, all as hereinafter fully described, and specifically pointed out in the claims.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, which-form a part of this specification, Figures 1, 2, 3, and 4 are isometrical views of the terminal head on the free end of the sewingmachine arm and its shuttle. Fig. 5 is a front elevation of the same with the face-plate thereof removed. Fig. 6 is a section at the line 6 6 in Fig. 5 of parts there shown. Fig. 7 is a front elevation of parts shown in Fig. 5 and illustrates their modes of operation. Fig. 8 is a section at the line 8 8 in Fig. 7 of parts there shown. Fig. 9 is a side elevation of a fragment of the free end of the arm of the machine and its terminal head broken away to show parts within. Figs. 10 and 11 are detailed views of parts shown in Fig. 9 with other parts added.

The foregoing views fully illustrate and embody myimprovement. They do not,however, show the arm in its entirety, its supporting-post, the entire driving-shaft and its bearings, and mechanism for rotating the former, as they are not essential to a complete understanding of my invention. No further reference will therefore be made hereinafter to the fact that such parts are not shown in the drawings or that they are fragmental.

Like letters of reference indicate correspondin g parts throughout the several views.

A is the terminal head on the free end of the arm A and will be hereinafter referred to by the term head only. The head A has a recess A therein, Fig. 5, ordinarily rectangular in form, as here shown, and formed by integral walls A, A A A, and A and closed by a removable face-plate A B is a driving shaft mounted horizontally in hearings in the post and arm of the machine.

C is a wrist-wheel fast to the driving-shaft B, provided with an outwardly-extending wrist C and havinga circumferential groove 0 therein adapted to engage and operate a take-up lever to be described hereinafter.

D is a take-up lever engaged at one end D by the circumferential groove C in the wrist-wheel C and provided at its other end D with a thread-eye D and mounted, by means of the pivot D on the lug D on the interior of the arm A.

E is a vertically movable presser bar mounted in bearings E E in the walls A A of the head A and terminating at its lower end E in a presser-foot E of the ordinary form.

F is a bracket fast'to the presser-bar E by being passed through and secured in the opening F therein and arranged to reciprocate vertically therewith and also having a slideway F Fig. 8, therein to admit the vertical guide-stud F projecting from the wall A of the head A, which serves to prevent lateral vibration of the end F of the same.

G is a tubular bearing rigidly secured, by means of a screw G, to the vertical lug G ,pr0- jecting from and integral with the bracket F.

H is a slack-thread-controlling lever provided at its free end H with a thread-eye H and mounted on the bearing G on the bracket F by means of the spring H fast by its other end H to and coiled about said bearing G, which is integral and continuous with and actu ates said slack-thread-controllinglever H.

H is a shield coveringthe front upper portions of the spring H and its bearing G and having a vertical slot H Fig. 0, therein serving as a stop to limit the upward and downward movements of the free end H of tho slack-thread-controlling lever H. I I

I is a threaded spindle inserted by tapping through an opening I in the front wall A of the head A. r

J J are a pair of perforated disks loosely mounted on the spindle I and having convex opposing faces J J and the latter, J, being providing with a releasing-lever J".

L is a spiral spring normally holding the disks J J in contact and is retained in position and adjusted on the spindle l by means of a nut L.

O isaspring normallyimpelling the presserbar E and its presser-foot E downward, as in Fig. 1.

P is a cam-lever mounted on the pivotbearing P for raising the bracket F, the presser-barE, and its presser-foot E against the action of the spring 0.

Q, Fig. 5, is a needle-bar mounted in the usual manner in bearings Q, Q in the walls A A of the head A and provided at its lower end with a needle Q The needle-bar Q is connected with the wrist O on the Wristwheel 0 by means of the slot Q in the inner face of the cross-head Q through which said needle-bar Q is inserted and to which it is fast.

Fig. 1 shows the machine just as the needle Q has finished its upward course and just as the take-up lever D has finished its upward stroke and drawn the needle-thread R tautly upward against the under side of the shuttlethread S to finish a stitch. \Vhile the takeup lever D was traveling upward to tighten the thread R the latter also drew the free end of the slack-thread controlling-lever H upward against the action of its spring H a half-inch, more or less, and retained it there by frictional contact therewith. The resistance offered by the spring H of the slackthread-controlling lever H obviously assisted the take-up lever D in tightening the thread R to complete the stitch last finished.

Fig. 2 shows the needle Q just as its point isentering the cloth T. It will be there observed that the take-up lever D and the slackthread controlling lever H have both descended a little distance from the positions they occupied in Fig'. 1 and that the resiliency of the spring H of the slack-thread-controlling lever H has caused the latter to descend sufiiciently to take up the slack of the thread R caused by the descent of the take-up lever D and thereby prevented the slack portion of said thread R from passing downward below the point of the needle Q and being either entangled or sewed down thereby, or both.

Fig. 3 shows the needle Q after it has completed its downward course, the take-up lever D and the slack-thread-controlling lever H also having descended to their lower limit of travel, the latter having been impelled by the action of its spring H to a still further descent from the position shown in Fig. 2 in order to completely release that portion of the thread R extending from the friction-disks J J to the needle Q and thereby permit it to be available to form a loop R of sufficient size to admit of the passage therethrough of the shuttle S.

Fig. 4 shows the take-up lever D and the slack-thread-controlling lever 11 taking up the slack thread R (shown in Fig. 3) after the shuttle S has passed through the loop formed thereby and returning simultaneously with the return of the needle Q to the positions shown in Fig. 1 to complete a stitch.

Since the slack-thread-controlling lever H and its spring H are mounted on the bearing G, rigidly connected through the bracket F with the presser-bar IE, it is evident that the distance between the presser-foot E thereon and such slack-thread-controllinglever 1-1 will always remain the same. As a result thereof the slack-thread-controlling lever H will travel up and down simultaneously with the resser-foot E and, regulated by the action of its spring H will in turn automatically regulate the thread R by causing it to be paid out to the needle Q in amounts corresponding with the varying thicknesses of the material being sewed, whether the same be very thin, medium, or very thick, for when I the resser-foot F. is raisedas, for instance, by a thick seam or welt passing thereunder at right angles thereto-the slack-threadcontrolling lever H will also be raised a corresponding distance and as a result take up less of the thread R, thus leaving more of it at the disposal of the needle Q to supply the suddenly and temporarily increased demand therefor. Obviously when the presser-foot E descends from the seam or welt to a lower position the slack-threadcontrolling lever H will descend a corresponding distance and take up more of the thread R, leaving less at the disposal of the needle Q As the net result of all of which it will be seen that the take-up mechanism of the machine automatically regulates the needlethread B, so as to adapt it to sew together fabrics of any desired thickness within the limits of the travel of the presser-foot E.

Fig. 7 shows the bracket F and presser-bar E in their lower positions and the spring 0 acting to maintain them there and the presserfoot E Fig. 1, in operative contact with the work T. WVith the parts of the tension mechanism of the machine in the position shown in Figs. 1 and 7 the tension of the thread R maybe regulated by means of the nut J. Whenever it is desired to remove the work T from the machine, the cam-lever P is elevated from the position shown in Fig. 7 to that shown in Fig. 5, with the result that the camsurfaee P thereon engaged and elevated the bracket F and the presser-bar E and its foot E carried thereby, from the positions shown in said Fig. 7 to those shown in said Fig. 5, when by pressing upon the releasing-lever J Fig. 5, the thread R will be released from the friction-disks J J and such work T may be removed from the machine.

What I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-- 1. In a take-up mechanism for sewing-machines, in combination, a take-up lever provided with a thread-eye, a vertically-movable presser-bar, a bracket fast to the presser-bar and arranged to reciprocate vertically therewith, a slack-th read-controllin g lever,mou nted on the bracket on the presser-bar and provided, at its free end, with a thread eye, means for actuating the take-up lever and means for reciprocating the presser-bar, substantially as and for the purpose specified. 2. In a take-up mechanism for sewing-machines, in combination, a driving-shaft, a wheel-fast thereto-having a circumferential camgroove therein adapted to engage and operate a take-up lever, a take-up lever engaged, at one end, by the circumferential groove in the Wheel, and provided, at its other end, with a thread-eye, a vertically-movable presser-bar, a bracket fast to the presser-bar and arranged to reciprocate vertically therewith, a slack-thread spring-actuated controlling-lever mounted on the bracket on the resser-bar and provided, at its free end,with a thread-eye, and hearings, in the machineframe, for operatively supporting all of said parts, substantially as and for the purpose In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

VILLIAM 0. FREE.

Witnesses:

D. D. MORRISON, NELLIE BUNKER. 

